Vision:
To support and empower student-athletes to achieve academic excellence and reach the full potential of their current & future selves.
Mission :
Rooted in a student-centered approach, the MAC fosters an inclusive, equity-minded atmosphere, offering a diverse set of academic support services and encourages mutual learning through holistic support of student-athlete
Who We Are:
The Matador Achievement Center is an academic advising and support office for student-athletes. Putting the academic success of our student-athletes first, we monitor their degree progress and success in the classroom by providing services to assist them on their way to graduation while maintaining their academic eligibility with the NCAA.
What We Do:
Academic Advising: Most student-athletes are referred to their major advisor to review courses for the upcoming semester. Then, they meet with their athletics academic advisor one-on-one each semester to check in on current class progress, build a schedule based on recommendations from the major advisor for the upcoming semester that works with their practice and competition schedule, and project for graduation. Graduation plans are also completed.
Academic Support: Academic support offered to student-athletes includes one-on-one tutoring, peer learning assistance, learning specialist and academic specialist meetings, objective-based structured study, and a technology checkout program.
NCAA Eligibility: Woven in most everything done in the office, advisors are keeping track of each student-athlete’s NCAA eligibility. Consideration is given to eligibility throughout the advising process and when assigning academic support.
Other: Academic team meetings, student development programming, meetings with coaches and sport administrators, compliance and eligibility trainings, APR tracking, grade progress reports, travel letters, transfer student initial eligibility, Summer Success Program.
NCAA Grant: Accelerating Academic Success Program
The Matador Achievement Center was created in the Fall 2013 semester, using funds received through an NCAA grant to establish a center focused on the Academic Achievement of CSUN's student-athletes. The creation of the Matador Achievement Center has allowed for a substantial increase in support for Student Athletes. The increase in support includes more broadly available weekly Learning Specialist and nightly Tutoring sessions, as well as the purchase of new technology such as iPads and laptops that student-athletes can check out for use in the classroom.
In 2013, California State University Northridge was selected to receive a $900,000 grant from the NCAA to enhance academic support for our student athletes. The grant has enabled us to expand our academic support services. This expansion has led to the separation of academic advising and mentoring and tutoring services. In 2013, the newly formed Matador Achievement Center opened with a brand new staff to oversee mentoring and tutoring. This separation of the office of Academic Services for Student Athletes and our mentoring and tutoring programs has made room for greater, more focused support. This has allowed the Academic Advisors to provide a more comprehensive academic counseling experience for our student athletes. In addition, the office of Academic Services for Student Athletes launched the new Student Athlete Summer Success Program in 2014. In collaboration with Athletics, Undergraduate Studies, Developmental Math and First Year Experiences the athletic advisors had 24 students participate in their inaugural program. The program has now expanded to 35 freshman student athletes for the 2015 summer term. Thanks to the NCAA grant, this freshman cohort will be participating in 2 courses this summer, mentoring and tutoring, life skills workshops and community service.